Injury
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Review
Proximal femoral fractures and vascular injuries in adults: Incidence, aetiology and outcomes.
Vascular injuries (VI) presenting during internal fixation (IF) of proximal femoral fractures (PFF) are potentially limb- and life-threatening. The purpose of this systematic review of the literature is to report on their incidence, associated complications and to give special emphasis in their prevention. ⋯ The incidence of VIPFF-IF is low, though it will probably rise because of the increasing frequency of PFF. With few exceptions, these injuries, which are potentially limb and life-threatening, are iatrogenic, resulting of errors in IF, with different types of lesions to intra- and extrapelvic vessels running in close proximity to the bone. Although the surgeon should bear in mind this possibility and achieve early diagnosis and prompt accurate treatment, there is no consensus as to what is the best diagnostic or therapeutic modality. A precise diagnosis of the preoperative vascular status of the limb, monitoring of the displacement of the lesser trochanter fragment, careful and gentle reduction of the fracture, and precise handling of instruments and implant selection and placement during IF, are factors to consider in order to prevent this complication, which should never be underestimated.
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Long bone infection remains a challenging situation for the orthopaedic surgeon. For most, treatment comprises a thorough debridement of all the infected bone, the filling of the resultant cavity with a bone substitute, and general antibiotics for a certain time. However, the type of bone substitute to insert in the cavity is still debated. ⋯ From this review, bioactive glass seems to be a useful bone substitute for long bone infection in humans. Few recurrences occurred after its use. In these cases, the volume of bone glass to insert was frequently underestimated and/or the skin coverage not adequate.
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Long bone infection remains a challenging situation for the orthopaedic surgeon. For most, treatment comprises a thorough debridement of all the infected bone, the filling of the resultant cavity with a bone substitute, and general antibiotics for a certain time. However, the type of bone substitute to insert in the cavity is still debated. ⋯ From this review, bioactive glass seems to be a useful bone substitute for long bone infection in humans. Few recurrences occurred after its use. In these cases, the volume of bone glass to insert was frequently underestimated and/or the skin coverage not adequate.
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Review Case Reports
Simultaneous bilateral "floating arm" of the humeri: an uncommon presentation of a rare complex injury and review of the literature.
The timing of definitive fixation for simultaneous fractures of the humerus in polytrauma patient is controversial. We report on the management of a patient that sustained bilateral "floating arm" fractures of the humeri. ⋯ After seven years MEPS showed excellent and good results in the right and left arms, while UCLA scores proved excellent in both sides. We encountered no intraoperative and postoperative complications.
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Despite modern advances in fracture care, deep (implant-related) infection remains a problem in the treatment of tibia fractures. There is some evidence that antibiotic-coated implants are beneficial in the prevention of this sometimes devastating complication. In the following study we describe our results using a gentamicin-coated intramedullary tibia nail (Expert Tibia Nail (ETN) PROtect™) for the surgical treatment of complex open tibia fracture and revision cases. ⋯ Musculoskeletal complications place a cost burden on total healthcare expenditure. Better understanding of the epidemiology and pathogenesis is essential because this can lead to prevention rather than treatment strategies. The purpose of the study was to evaluate a gentamicin-coated tibia nail in the prevention of deep (implant-related) infection. In our patient population no deep infections occurred after placement of the gentamicin-coated nail. Following this study and literature data, antibiotic-coated implants seem a potential option for prevention of deep infection in trauma patients. In the future this statement needs to be confirmed by large randomised clinical trials.